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Nearly forty years ago, Damico and Purkey (1978) pioneered a study on class clowns that became a benchmark publication in the field. Utilizing sociometric assessment methods, they screened 3500 pupils, eventually selecting 96 class clowns that yielded 10 or more “class clown” nominations from peers. The class clowns were compared to a randomly selected sample of 237 non-clowns on the bases of teacher ratings, student self-esteem, and school-attitude measures. They report class clowns as being predominantly males, having lower positive attitudes toward teachers and the principal than non-clowns, and they saw themselves as leaders and as being vocal in expressing ideas and opinions to their classmates. Moreover, they were judged by their teachers to be higher than the non-clowns in asserting, unruliness, attention seeking, leadership, and cheerfulness, but lower in accomplishing. Thus, a new and coherent picture of the class clown was emerging; but little additional research took place, with no study replications. Before building upon these findings, and extending them, a few issues need highlighting. The first relates to the assessment of class clowns. Is there really only one type of class clowns or do more types exist? Is a “type” approach still appropriate, as psychology has moved to dimensional conceptualizations? In the Damico and Purkey (1978) study, there are gradual differences and a criterion of 10 nominations was rather an arbitrary set. So utilizing a dimensional approach to class clown behaviors is more appropriate. Another set of issues relate to the domains of measurements. Are teacher self-reports of accomplishing sufficient or should they be supplemented by the objective grades of the student, as well as the student’s own perspective and peer reports?

Purpose: To assess the awareness, facilitators, and barriers to policy implementation related to obesity prevention for primary school children. Design: A cross-sectional study administered using an online questionnaire. Setting: Conducted in 447 primary schools in a state in Malaysia. Participants: One school administrator from each school served as a participant. Measures: The questionnaires consisted of 32 items on awareness, policy implementation, and facilitators and barriers to policy implementation. Analysis: Descriptive analysis was used to describe the awareness, facilitators, and barriers of policies implementation. Association between schools’ characteristics and policy implementation was assessed using logistic regression. Results: The majority (90%) of school administrators were aware of the policies. However, only 50% to 70% of schools had implemented the policies fully. Reported barriers were lack of equipment, insufficient training, and limited time to complete implementation. Facilitators of policy implementation were commitment from the schools, staff members, students, and canteen operators. Policy implementation was comparable in all school types and locality; except the policy on “Food and Drinks sold at the school canteens” was implemented by more rural schools compared to urban schools (odds ratio: 1.74, 95% confidence interval: 1.13-2.69). Conclusion: Majority of the school administrators were aware of the existing policies; however, the implementation was only satisfactory. The identified barriers to policy implementation were modifiable and thus, the stakeholders should consider restrategizing plans in overcoming them.

Background: Mind-body dualisms create particular difficulties for researching and justifying learning and knowledge within PE practices. These issues are compounded in the UK by prevailing cognitivistic ideas of education, knowledge and learning. Crum (1993) suggests reconceptualising PE as movement culture as a potential solution to the limitations created by dualistic positions within education. How knowledge and learning within movement culture is positioned, however, was left underdeveloped by Crum. The aim of this thesis is to explore an embodied, action position on knowledge and learning, as a potential solution to this issue. Purpose: This thesis is driven by two purposes. The first; to examine and discuss how John Dewey’s theorising of knowledge and learning within experience provides a theoretical position on knowledge and learning within movement culture. The second; to utilise this position to explore how pupils’ and teachers’ actions within primary PE lessons constitute and negotiate the movement cultures within their school. Findings: In adopting a position which dissolves mind-body dualisms, movement culture allows the practical work of PE lessons to be considered as contexts of knowledge production. This opens up our understanding of different ways of knowing in PE through pupils’ epistemological ‘action-in-PE-settings’. Rather than creating another hybrid of educational ideology by objectifying what to ‘do’ or ‘know’, movement culture keeps the ‘who’ of participation in PE practice in view. Such a position is achieved because pupils are seen as ‘coming to know’ through their immediate and continuous experiences of sports and physical activities both in PE and beyond the school gates. By dissolving traditional dualisms within educational ideology, movement culture allows ideologies and assumptions about learning in PE to be decoded and managed. It also provides a framework to explore subject-matter for learning and analyses some of the disconnections which exist within PE practice. Conclusions: Reconceptualising PE as movement culture is not intended to create a logic of practice to which I claim PE should ascribe. In this thesis, movement culture offers a position from which to consider the continuity between PE and pupils’ lives within and outside of the school gates. Such a standpoint can challenge our ideas as to what subject-matter could be within PE and the possibilities of learning outcomes other than those that focus on performance sport or bodily training for fitness. From a research perspective questions arise in relation to understanding very young pupils’ experiences of knowing within PE and how learning and knowledge are embodied across other subject areas. Addressing such questions may help to support new understandings of learning and knowledge within schools that are concurrent with developing new methodologies and research tools. These may in turn support the continuing development of pedagogical practices.

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